Female pit bull found tied to fence during snowstorm

TROY >> An investigation has been launched and a reward has been announced for any information leading to the arrest of the person responsible for leaving a pit bull tied to a fence outside during Thursday’s frigid snowstorm.

A concerned citizen alerted police after they found a 2-to-3-year-old pit bull tied to a fence behind the Lansingburgh Boys & Girls Club during a snowstorm which brought approximately a foot of snow and single-digit temperatures to the region.

According to Capt. John Cooney, animal control officers found the dog lying down underneath a nearby car around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. Residents who found the dog unleashed it so that it could move around.

The dog was soon taken to the Troy Veterinary Hospital, where veterinarian Dr. Laura Engel said Jenna, the name hospital staff gave the pit bull, showed signs of a skin and ear infection with small open sores around her leg and face.

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“I think the infection was pretty advanced,” Engel said. “I don’t think it received a lot of veterinary care in the recent past.”

Engel also said the dog’s paws appeared swollen due to the skin infection and said the cold weather could have exacerbated that condition. However, Engel said the dog’s body temperature was normal, and had not dropped, adding that if it had been out there for another 5 to 6 hours, there would have been a change.

Citizens took to social media website Facebook expressing anger over the fact someone would abandon an animal, especially during inclement weather. Newly sworn-in Councilman Jim Gordon, D-District 1, even put out a reward of $100 for information leading to the arrest of Jenna’s former owner.

“As someone who had grown up with animals their entire life, with dogs as a kid and now owning a cat with my wife, I’ve always had a warm spot for pets,” Gordon said. “Leaving an animal abandoned like that is one of the lowest acts of humanity.”

People soon began responding to Gordon’s post on Facebook regarding the reward and offered to chip in some cash to sweeten the pot a bit. As of late Friday afternoon, Gordon said the reward had grown to $605.

Gordon said he was glad to see the community respond in such a positive way, adding that when crimes like this one occur, it usually tends to make people numb, leading to more crimes being committed. However, he said the Lansingburgh community has always come together to fight back against the negative.

“We’ve always tried to lead by example through community work and our neighborhood group,” Gordon said. “We’ve done things to spearhead fundraisers and raise money or toys. This just continues along that vein.”

Engel said Jenna has been doing well and has been friendly and cooperative with staff at the hospital. She said they will be treating the infection, spaying her, and then making her available for adoption in the coming weeks.

Cooney said police have been receiving tips from various sources, including ones on Facebook.

“It’s fair to say the investigation is proceeding forward at a vigorous pace,” Cooney said.